(1) Field of Invention
This invention relates to apparatus for improving athletic skills in sports. Specifically it relates to apparatus for exercising the bodily skills of the self-defense technique and sport, known as American Karate.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Karate, the art of self-defense and sport, as practiced in the United States, was brought to these shores by the American servicemen who served in the Far East. The Professional Karate Association carries out weekly televised tournaments addressed to the large group which participates in the sport. The sport, as practiced in this country, has four basic movements, (a) the Punch, (b) the Front Drive Kick, (c) the Side Kick and (d) the Roundhouse Kick.
(a) The Punch is executed by assuming a fighting stance, moving your fist forward toward the target, and then twisting the hip while pivoting the rear foot.
(b) The Front Drive Kick is executed by raising the knee at least waist high, thrusting the ball of the foot straight at the target (stomach or groin of opponent) and recoiling back to the raised knee position.
(c) The Side Kick is executed by turning your body at right angles to the target. The knee is raised at least waist high, the heel cocked and thrust outwards to and through the target with the toes lower than the heel. The foot is then immediately recoiled to the cocked position.
(d) The Roundhouse Kick is executed by raising the knee and pointing it at the target with the lower part of the leg at a 90 degree angle to the upper part of the leg. The instep, or alternatively the ball of the foot, is swung in a slashing motion to the target (usually the middle body of the opponent).
Currently, to practice these American Karate movements, the presence of a second person is necessary to hold a padded cushion, simulating a target. These cushions are fairly thick and covered with vinyl or leather. Handles are provided on either side of the cushion to permit the assisting person to hold the cushion in various positions appropriate to the Karate movement being practiced and simulating various portions of the human body.
Various specialized equipment has been known in the prior art but most such equipment was designed for sports other than American Karate. As early as 1918, McArdle '678 invented an apparatus for boxing practice. He suspended a smaller top bag and a larger lower bag from a wall mounting, simulating the head and body of a person. Ropes and pulleys were used for adjustment and springs were interspersed in the rigging to provide resiliency. Bonde '633, in 1926, designed a free-standing novel support for striking bags which comprised a platform which was collapsible for storage and had adjustable leg members to vary the height of the platform.
In 1929, McNamara '012 invented a punching bag structure, mounted on a rockable arm which had a coil spring for resiliently holding the rocking arm upright and had a rotatable coupling to permit the bag to pivot around its vertical axis. Cummins '217, in 1967, invented a tackling dummy for conditioning football players. This dummy had a freely suspended fibrous core and was suspended by a swivel which was free generally to rotate about its vertical axis. The swivel was suspended within a coil spring to give some resiliency to the up and down movement of the dummy. Chambers '759 constructed a Judo trainer using a vertical resilient strap, suspended from the ceiling by a rope and pulley, and two divergent resilient straps which were secured to the floor. The straps were covered by a manikin to simulate a human body. The trainer was adjustable vertically by means of the rope and pulley.
The latest prior art is represented by Stangle '772 who, in 1983, designed a movable unitary structure for collectively mounting various types of exercising devices useful in the martial arts, such as a heavy bag and pads. At least five conditioning functions were supposedly provided by the structure to include a "stretch-a-ciser" for the arms, harness weights for the ankles, hand and elbow striking pads, and a speed bag and rebound ring for eye and hand coordination. Karate was mentioned as a covered sport.
Objectives of the prior art appear to have been portability, adjustability and compactness, with the apparatus usually customized to serve a particular sport. Other than generally conditioning arm and leg muscles, none of the prior inventions appear to fulfill all of the unique needs of American Karate in any simple manner. Prior art known to this inventor includes the following U.S. Pat. Nos.:
______________________________________ 1,267,678 5/1918 McArdle 1,578,633 3/1926 Bonde 1,703,012 2/1929 McNamara 3,337,217 8/1967 Cummins 3,421,759 9/1983 Stangle ______________________________________